Puncture-proof tire.



D. M. ROTHENBERGER.

PUNCTURE PROOF TIRE. APPLICATION FILED'JUNE 1} 1914.

Patented May 18, 1915.

uhtwmoao DANIEIi M. ROTHENBERGER, OF READING, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR 0F ONE-HALF T0 GEORGE W. HEIFFELFINGER, OF WYOMISSING, PENNSYLVANIA.

PUNCTURE-PROOF TIRE.

1,1aaeov.

Specification of Letters fvatent.

Patented 11a 18, 1915.

Application filed June 1, 1914.. Serial No. 842,217.

1 To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, DANIEL l lto'rrrnn- BERGER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Reading, in the county of Berks and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Puncture-Proof Tires, of which the following is a specification. I

My invention relates particularly to pneumatic tires for vehicles, the main object being to provide an improved reinforced structure adapted to prevent blowouts and punctures, though the improve ment also provides forasecuring an increased amount of tire service generally.

The invention is fully described in conncotion, with the accompanying drawings, and is specifically pointed out in the claims.

Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view of a pneumatic tire illustrating my invention as embodied in the shoe portion thereof. Fig. 2 is a plan view of a mid-width section of the armored reinforcing fabric embodied in the Fig. 1 construction; and Fig. is a cross-section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a plan View similar to Fig. 2, showing a modified form of the armordisks; and Figs. 5 and 6 are separate views of the disks employed in these Figs. 2 and 4 respectively. Fig. 1 indicates a pneu matic tire of ordinary form, comprising an inner inflatable tube 2 and an outer shoe '3 embod in in improved blow-out and g .V i

puncture proof fabric. I

This fabric, as shown, iswoven of similar warp strands and we t strands 6, all of which are spaced apart so as to engage a closely arranged series of interwoven armor disks, 7 or 7 between each two adjacent warps 5, 5 and intersecting weftsfi, 6. The warps and wefts are preferably made of round-twisted raw hide, which catisfao torily provides the required body and strength, though equivalent strands of dif ferent material may be used -if desired; and the armor disks, 7 or 7, are preferably made of steel or other suitable metal, each with a circumferential groove forming a reduced intermediate portion 10 between outer and inner head portions 11 and 12 respectively. Thesedisks are preferably embodied in the fabric as desired during the weaving process, the reduced body portions 10 thereof corresponding in size with the spacing apart of the strands, and the larger head portions 11 and 12 of each a disk being adapted to overlap each of the four strands which surround and engage it. This overlap of the head portions 11 and 12 eXtends approximately to the midr dle of each engaging strand, so that the edges of each disk head will nearly or quite contact with the abutting edges of all adjacent disks and thereby form a substantially continuous armor surface; the inner heads 12 however, being preferably of slightly less size than the outer heads 11. These heads may most advantageously be made square, as indicated in Figs. '2 and 5, though round heads as indicated in Figs. at and 6 practically provide such a continuous armor surface as is contemplated inasmuch as the interstices in such case are not of sufiicient size to practically interfere with effectiveness.

As indicated in Fig. 1' the disks 7 or 7 are interwoven with the fabric only for a sufficient portion of its width to form a puncture tread for the tire, while the edge portions of the fabric are unarmored; such edge portions being of sufiicient width to extend around the cross-section of the shoe 3, and being anchored in the latter in the process of casting or forming it, so as to greatly reinforce the tire structure and practically insure it against blow-outs. The loosely woven StPICtlllB of the fabric itself permits of its unarmored portions be ing readily compacted circumferentially of employed to mo e effectively anchor it iii' the tire structure When thus embodied it will be readily seen that the closely armored fabric not only provides an effective blow-out and puncture proof construction, but that each. element of the armoring structure is positively 'etained in cetermined position so as to avoid possible dis-.

placement or injury to the body of the tire.

What ll claim is? 1. in a pneumatic tire, a shoe having our bedded therein a puncture-proof reinforcing fabric, said fabric comprising spaced j warps and weftstrandswoven around circumferentially grooved armor-disks; the

head portions of each of said disks over-v lapping four engaging strands so as to ice disks and form a substantially continuous armor surface, and the unarmored edge portions of said fabric extending around the cross-section of the tire and being an- ]5 chored therein substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

DANIEL M. ROTHENBERGER. Witnesses Jones K. HAHN,

THOS. KENEKEL. 

